Wesmen heads to nationals – Winnipeg Free Press

A year ago, the University of Winnipeg Wesmen men's basketball team earned the program's first trip to the U Sports National Tournament in 29 years.

The euphoria was short-lived as the Wesmen lost in the first round and were quickly eliminated from the national team.

Is an older and wiser Wesmen team better prepared for the upcoming 12-team post-season in the Canada West men's basketball playoffs next week?

“(We) understand that you have to play your best or your season is over, and we trust each other that we can navigate the ups and downs that come with any game. middle type,” Wesmen head coach Mike Rambo said Tuesday afternoon.

“I hope a lot of people will be surprised, and it's something we've seen before, and we're not worried about it at all.”

Winnipeg returned with a six-game postseason winning streak and as a result, a 15-5 record and .5869 fielding percentage index, good for a seventh-place finish in the tournament and a first-round bye.

The Wesmen are scheduled to face the winner of the Regina-Fraser Valley game in a quarterfinal match on Feb. 22 at the Investors Group Athletic Centre.

The No. 11 Cougars, seeded sixth, would be slight favorites to eliminate the Cascades. Coincidentally, the Wesmen went on the road last weekend to sweep Regina.

“Obviously, they have a lot of size, but it's hard for them to keep up with our speed,” Wesmen fourth-year point guard Shawn Maranan said of the Cougars. “We're going to try to emphasize attacking with defense, stops and steals. I think that was the key to the weekend.”

After an offseason plagued by an ear infection that required surgery and a preseason finger injury, Maranan returned to top form.

“He started to feel like himself in the second semester,” Raimbo said. “He played with a little more zip in his step. And it's obviously good for us. That's a big part of being the best we can be.”

Maranan eased the burden of playing heavy minutes on freshman guard Kato Jaro, keeping him fresh for the playoffs, while also allowing 2022-23 backup point guard Alberto Gordo to focus on his strengths as a shooter.

“What you don't see on the stat sheet is the fact that he works his tail off and hits the glass between the trees every game,” Maranan Jaro said. “He is not afraid of anyone. He just plays hard and has a lot of heart. He will definitely bring toughness to our team.”

Another good sign for Winnipeg is the improvement in forward Emmanuel Thomas, who is playing regularly after suffering an illness over the holiday break and losing 20 pounds.

“He's slowly getting back to where he was and he played well for us on Saturday,” Raimbo said.

While Thomas has been limited, third-year guard Malachi Alexander has experienced an uptick in playing time, while also posting career highs in scoring (9.4 points per game) and rebounding (4.8 per game).

Alexander credits the improved shooting stroke he began working on with assistant coach Matt Dyke in October for the improved scoring.

“I was a really high jumper and I had a little bit of a problem (in my shooting),” explained Alexander, who went from a 20 percent three-point shooter in 2022-23 to 39 percent this season. “I worked to make it easier. Now I'm going to lower my jump and increase my arc.”

The seeding schedule for next week's playoffs isn't complete, as the preliminary seeded Victoria Vikes must finish their regular season by hosting the Thompson Rivers Wolves in rescheduled games Wednesday and Thursday. TRU, currently 13th in the conference standings, could clinch the 12th and final playoff spot by upsetting the Vikes.

The Manitoba Bisons are tied for the fourth seed in the playoffs with the eighth-seeded Brandon Bobcats.

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